Imagine that a future pop singer is told they cannot take singing lessons until they can fill a stadium, or a future basketball player is told they cannot dribble a ball until they make it to the NBA. Absurd, right? This is why we don’t need to wait to develop students’ leadership and global citizenship until they are adults. So, let’s discuss why student leadership is important, and then outline simple steps to support and empower the leaders and global citizens of today and tomorrow.

Developing student leadership and global citizenship helps students learn about their identities. Global citizenship is often already a part of their daily lives. . This percentage only accounts for students who have not yet reached English language proficiency. Language is just the tip of the iceberg. Engaging in global citizenship provides students with the opportunity to reflect on their identities, learn about the identities of others, find common ground and celebrate what makes everyone unique.

Student leadership also creates stronger school communities. Students are a school’s number one stakeholder.  Oftentimes, well-intentioned adults make decisions for students without ever consulting them. While there are some decisions regarding safety or fiscal responsibility that should be left to adults, involving students in leadership strengthens the bonds between students and adults. Students can serve in many capacities where they can inform decisions and serve as role models for each other.

Through leadership, students develop empathy. True leadership is about listening to others to learn about their strengths, needs and experiences. When students serve as leaders, they must be open to the perspectives of others. Curious students make exceptional leaders, as they are more adept at asking questions and making things better for others and their environment.

Here are a few simple ways to support student leadership and global citizenship:

1. Student panels – Invite students to conferences and school board meetings so they can speak about their experiences and perspectives. Prepare students by practicing questions they could be asked.
2. Membership on advisory boards – Give students a seat at the table before, during and after implementing new programs and initiatives. Model active listening for students with curiosity about their perspectives.
3. Club participation – Encourage students to take on leadership roles as members of clubs within their interests. Prompt them to consider how to make clubs and school activities inclusive for all students.
4. Students as mentors – Connect students by pairing younger students with older students who can serve as role models. Pay attention to who shows heightened social awareness and harness it to support others.

Students as young as fourth grade can be successful leaders and global citizens. Students at the kindergarten age or younger can begin to develop empathy and learn about their identities. Tell your students they are global citizens and leaders. Scaffold their skills and create opportunities for them to prove themselves. As educators, we can either wait for students to figure things out as adults or we can nourish their leadership and global citizenship now.

Browse the education programs at ·¬ÇŃĘÓƵ that are designed to equip you to lead students to be the best they can be.

It’s important for administrators, and especially for those considering becoming administrators, to understand that the role is different. Teachers impact students directly, every day. Administrators impact students indirectly. This doesn’t mean that administrators don’t interact with their students, because they do, but much of the value of their role comes through their leadership.

Excellent administrators know that their greatest impact comes from their focus on creating a professional, student-focused learning environment. Research has established that effective school leaders engage in instructionally focused interactions with teachers first and foremost, within a mission driven, collaborative culture. (To review some current research about this, consider reading this .) But that doesn’t mean that excellent administrators don’t get to interact with students, because they definitely do!

Administrators can guide student character development through discipline.

Depending on an administrator’s role, discipline may be a big part of the job. The best administrators are the ones who understand the enormous privilege and responsibility they have in working with students during these critical moments. When a child has made a mistake or done something unfortunate, a skilled administrator will help a student understand the impact of his or her actions, figure out how to repair or restore the damage they’ve done, and how to move forward with their dignity and sense of self intact. These are “big ticket” moments in students’ lives and administrators have the opportunity to play a large role in them.

Administrators can be a voice for student needs.

Another powerful way to interact with students is to develop an advisory group that meets on a recurring basis and has a set agenda. Invite students to keep you aware of what’s on their mind and what they need from their school. Consider allowing student committees to take the lead on planning a school event, with you as their advisor.

Administrators can be visible.

One way that administrators can interact with students is by being visible and accessible throughout the school. Proceed with caution, though, as this can be a slippery slope. Often, principals and assistant principals think they’re not as effective unless they are always on bus duty, lunch duty and hallway duty. The best administrators are known by and accessible to their students. Standing in the halls and watching kids get on buses can help with that, but planned, purposeful interactions will always be more productive.

Consider visiting each lunch wave once a week. Consider joining in during a music, art or physical education class at each grade level. Stop by at a practice or competition for each team or performing group. In other words, make the rounds, but always remember that “making the rounds” alone, while valuable, does not make you a highly effective leader – instructional leadership is your primary objective.

As educators, we all have a common purpose – the success of our students – and we have important work to do towards that end. Always remember the joy that comes from reading with a student or watching a student solve a tricky problem. Find ways to build a bit of this joy into your daily routine while keeping focused on your role as an instructional leader.

You can become the administrator you aspire to be with the education programs at ·¬ÇŃĘÓƵ.